Locking means for trunk-flaps.



PATENTED FEB. .19, 1907.

I. MENDEL. LOCKING MEANS FOR TRUNK FLAPS.

APPLICATION FILED APB. 14,1906. v

J29 yen/a1.

[IA/126mm? sections A and 'B,

UNITED STAEEPATENT orrron.

ISI'DOR' MEND-EL, or CINCINNATI, oII-Io,

LOCKING MEANS FOR TRUNK-FLAPS'.

Specification of Letters Patent. PatentedFeb. 19 1907.

Applicatioirfiled April 14,1906- Serial N01 311,630.

1'0 all witom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Isrnon h/IENDEL, a citi- I zenof the United States, residing at Cincin i inwardly thereat at an angle. nati, Hamilton county, State of invented certain new and'useful Improvements in Looking and'I do declare the following .to be aclear, full, and exact description of the invention, attention being called to the accompanying 1 housing. The larger part of. the twooppo metal is turned inwardly to completely in.- close the catch, as shown at f,

drawings, with the reference characters the same at a proper space marked thereon, which form also a part of I this specification.

signed to beespecially adapted for internal this latter. trunk doors or flaps, but not necessarily lim- To release a catch from its keeper .I pro ited to such'use. vide a pull-rod G, engaging with one'end its In the following specification and particushank (Land if there are several catches-I; full provide such arod for each catch. In such-a larly pointed out in the claims is found a description of my invention, together with! case it is'also necessary that these pull-rods its operation, parts, and construction, which are manipulatedsimultaneously froma cenlatter is also illustrated in the accompanying tral point of operation: For such purpose drawings, in which they connect with their other endsto a cm:-

Figure 1 shows in perspective view a wardtral tumbler or rocking plate robe-trunk to which my invention is applied. Fig. 2 shows a reverse view of the internal door to which my locking means are applied. Fig. 3 shows, in enlarged detail view, the manipulating parts as they appear in Fig.1, also part of the locking n'eans as they appear behind the door to which they are secured and when a portion-ofthe same is broken away. Fig. 4 shows a rear view of these parts and as they appear in Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is a horizontal section on line 5 of Figs 1 and-2 or 3 and 4 and shows positionof parts imrr. ediately before looking. Fig. 6, in a similar view, shows the locking act coirplete.

Wardrobe-trunks consist usually of two (see Fig. 1,) hinged to each other, and of which one section is usually provided with a door or flaps C to close it independently against the other section.

The locking means consist of spring-catches 1), their number depending on the size of the I door, and maybe one only in small doors. In door. It will now be seen that by means of a larger sizes it is preferable to have one at l partial rotation of plate H all catches may be least for each of the free edges of the door, 1 simultaneously withdrawn from their keepthey operating in conjunction with keepers ers. For locking, the door is simply pushed E provided within the particular section. inwardly until the inclined side of the catches Each catch has a shank (1, upon which is g encounters their keepers, (see Fig. 5,) when sleeved a spring (1 whereby it is kept in northey yield against their springs until passed mal engagement with its keeper. The rear over their keeper, after which they are again end of the spring rests against a shoulder f, forced outwardly by the springs. The keepers are now in front of the catch and occupy formed within a housing F, which contains I the catch and its spring. The housings are the space between them and the door. (See preferably of sheet metal, and said shoulders l an operating+handle h. In view of the limwhich-these trunk-flaps are usually made,.it is preferable to provide a metallic housing J, open toward the fitted into an opening in door 0, which it fills, the arrangement and dimensions beingsuch that an outwardly-open recess is the front of the door, (see Figs. 1, 5, into which handle it, the outer end of pin h, may be turned whennot in use, so as to present no obstructing: projection which would interfere with the closing of the trunk. up on its pin h so as permit it to be grasped, as shown in dotted lines in Figs. 3 and 5 A flange j is provided on this housing J for its attachment to the and 6,)

are obtained by punching an opening into; one side ofthe housing and-turningthemetal; This mayfbes- Ohio, have i done at oneor at all three of the sides of: the

Means for Trunk-Flaps; l site sides of a housing is also turned. out-+- wardly to form attaching fla'nges f, eXcept'-. near the front end of the housing, where this betweenit and the door to adnit the keeper (see Fig. 6) and This invention relates to locking means deto positively guide the catch over the edge ofupon a pin h, supported so asto'be free for rotation andprovided on its outer endwith ited thickness and strength of material out of bearing for these pins, which I do in shape of adisk-shaped front and set and formed in:

'ointedly connectedto For use this handle'is turned. to project outwardly, to

sov as to keep H, mounted So I Fig. 6.) The thickness of the keepers is limited, they being of sheet metal, and may thus readily occupy this space. The flaps or doors of these trunks are usually of light material, presenting little rigidity orstiffness, and therefore when pushed into closing position i the catches should yield readily and simultal neously when coming in contact, as'shown in ance otherwise upon the shank of this catch and a i and tozlimitthe manipulating action, I provide a stop K,

its thefmanipulation to the proper extent.

outwardly to form attaching-flanges, the re- Fig. 5, with their keepers. Otherwise only I some of the catches might engage their keepl ers, while as to stiflly-working ones the light material of the flap would bend thereat, so that these particular catches would not lock readily. Therefore to remove resistance as much as possible the engagement of rods G to the catches is not a positive one, so that when these latter are pushed back by contact with their keepers the movement of the parts and resistance incident thereto does not go beyond these catches. This is done by providing the ends of shanks d with shoulders W, the shanks being engaged in front of their shoulders by the forked ends 9 of; rods G. It will now be seen that when a catch engages its keeper for looking, as shown in Fig. 5, it will readily vyield and in it's retractive move ment does not haveto overcome the resistpresent'if all the locking-rods and the centralimanipulating parts would have to be.inoved'simultaneously. To provide forequal movement of all the catches which works in conjunction with a notch k in the edge of plate Hand lim- Having described my invention, I claim as new 7 1. A spring-catch having a rearwardlyextended shank with a shoulder at its end, a sheet-metal housing fitted to receive the same, part of the opposite sides'being turned mainingpart of these sides being bent inwardly to inclose the catch, a spring sleeved shoulder against which the inner end of the spring rests, such shoulder being formed by turning part of the metal of the housing inwardly.

2. In means forlocking the inner door whichcloses one of the sections of a wardv robe-trunk, and which door has an opening, 1

these rods extend and within which they terminate, theend of each rod being forked, catches fitted into these housings having shoulders at their inner gaged by the forked ends of-the rods, keepers one for each catch and springs provided for each catch, operating to hold them in locking engagement with their keepers when opposite them, but permitting them to yield independently of these rods when passing'in or out of their catches.

ends which are en- Inmeans for locking the inner door which closes one of the sections of a wardrobe-trunk, the combination of a number "of housings secured at the edges of the door, they being open at opposite ends and provided with an internal shoulder which forms a spring-seat, catches contained therein, hav

ing shanks extending rearwardly beyond the shoulders mentioned, where they terminate into a shoulder, complementary keepers for these catches, springs within these housings adaptedfto engage with their outer ends the catches, to hold them normally in looking engagement with their keepers and seated with their inner ends on the shoulders mentioned, rods having forked ends engaging the shanks of the catches between the shoulders at their ends and the spring-seat so as to permit the catches to move inwardly independ ently of the rods and means to manipulate [these rods to simultaneously unlock all catches. v

In'testimony whereof I hereunto afiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

ISIDOR MENDEL,

' Witnesses:

C. SPENGEL, O. HJVVIEsE. 

